Method of tunneling.



EDWARD E. MCCABE, 0F BENTON, WISCONSIN.

METHOD OF TUNNELING.

Specicaton of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 12, 1916.

Application led March 29, 1916. Serial No. 87,522.

To all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD E. MCCABE, citizen of the United States, residing at Benton, in the county of Lafayette and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Tunneling, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates t'o a new and useful method for tunneling in mines or wherever a horizontal tunnel is desired.

As an object of the invention it is the aim to provide a system of tunneling wherein the manual handling such as shoveling of the broken rock or material is reduced to a minimum and also utilize the force of gravity to carry the broken material from the blasting point into cars.

A further object of the invention is to provided a system wherein the drift heading and the stope heading can be simultaneously worked without interference. To accomplish this result the stope heading is worked from the top angularly downwardly, thereby allowing the broken rock or other material to gravitate along the inclined bottom of the stope heading onto the lagging of the timbering, where it further gravitates through a suitable opening in the lagging to cars, said space in the lagging being advanced as the stope heading is advanced.

A further object is to obviate collection of the broken rock on top of the lagging of the timbering and the subsequent manual shoveling of the broken material into cars through chutes, which is the case in the systems now in use, where stope headings are blasted up from the bottom. Also in the methods now in use the timbering catches the full shock of the explosion and the broken rock, which iscast downwardly upon the timbering, thereby damaging it to a great extent. t

A further object is to provide a system wherein all chutes are eliminated and at the same time provide a construction of timbering so that the lagging may be taken up as the stope heading is advanced, thereby advancing the opening as the stope heading is advanced and in this manner allow the cars to ll at any point under the timbering and also so constructing the timbering that it may be advanced as the tunnel is advanced.

A further object is to provide a system wherein the side walls of headings may be blasted on either stope or drift or both sides of the drift heading according to the width of tunnel desined and the broken matter gravitated to receptacles.

The invention consists in the matters herein described, and more fully defined in the appended claims:

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal central view illustrating the construction of the tunnel. Fig. 2 is a front elevation looking into the tunnel. Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 33 of Fig. 1.

Referring more especially to the drawings, 1 designates a drift heading or passageway, which is run in on the bottom or track level 2 of the tunnel. In the drift heading a timbering construction 3 is placed, which consists of the side uprights 1 and 5, said uprights being held in spaced relation to each other by the transverse bars 6, which are secured at 7 to the uprights 4; and 5. Resting upon the upper ends of the corresponding oppositely disposed uprights are a series of transverse beams 8, the purpose of which will presently appear. The uprights t and 5 are held in spaced relation in the drift heading by the bars 9, which are spiked or otherwise secured to the uprights as at 10 which in connection with the bars 6 prevents collapsing of the frame of the timber-ing. A lagging 11 is placed upon the beams 8, which laggings consists of a series of beams 12 longitudinally disposed, these beams may be of any length, but should be long enough to span from one transverse beam 8 to the next transverse beam 8, however in practice the beams and uprights are of such lengths that they may be easily handled by one man. Several of the centrally disposed beams 12 are omitted longitudinally throughout the entire length of the timbering so as to form a longitudinal opening 13. Upon the top of the lagging 11 is a second lagging 15, formed by a series of beams 14, which are placed at right angles to the beams 12 of the lagging 11. The beams forming the laggings 11 and 15 are not secured to each other or to the beams 8, the reason for which will presently appear. Secured at 16, to one of the crossbeams 8 and extending downwardly and rearwardly from the timbering 3 are braces 17 and 18, which serve to prevent the collapsing of the timbering, the ends 19 of the braces 17 and 1S are embedded in the floor of the tunnel. The timbering is further braced by wedges la and 5a which are driven in between the uprights and the side walls of the drift; heading thereby additionally bracing and preventing the collapsing of the timbering.

A track 20, consisting of rails 20, which are mounted upon cross ties 2l, extends along the floor of the tunnel and the drift heading. The track is centrally disposed under the timbering and in alinement with the longitudinal opening 13 in theI lagging 11 and upon said track a car 22 is placed for the reception of the broken material.

The stope heading 23 is blasted in from the top, of the tunnel l21 until the incline 24 is formed, after which the blasting is continued so that the incline 2l at all stages of subsequent blasting will be maintained at an acute angle to the roof of the drift heading 1. As the rock or other material is blasted the broken material 211L gravitates down the incline 24 of the stope heading on to the lagging 15, thence through the opening 15a in said lagging 15 and through the uncovered portion of the longitudinal opening 13 in the'hgging 11 and into the car 22 which is lunder and in registration with the opening 15a. lhen a car is full it is hauled away and another car placed under the opening 15a thereby7 catching the broken rock after each blast.

It will be seen that by this method of tunneling the broken rock will gravitate to the car immediately after being broken by the blast and that the timbering will not be damaged by the blast for the reason that the broken rock cannot come in contact with it. It will also be seen that blasting can be continued without stopping to clear away the debris for the reason that the broken rock or other material gravitates down the incline 24: and into the car 22 immediately after each blast, therefore the incline immediately clears so that blasting is practically a continuous operation.

As the blasting of the stope heading is advanced, the opening 152l is also advanced, by removing, as required, the beams 14 forming the upper lagging 15. Also as the drift and stope headings are advanced the various parts of the timbering, as needed, may be removed from the rear end and joined to the forward end of the timbering thereby providing a continuous advancement of the timboring as the headings are advanced.

The side walls 25 and 26 are blasted away at the same time as the stope heading and in the same manner except that below the level of the top lagging the broken rock will gravitate to the iiooring of the tunnel.

Having thus described my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. rlhe method of excavating tunnels comprising first constructing a drift heading, then removing the roof by blasting in a stope heading, blasting away the material from the lower surface of the stope heading and maintaining said stope heading in adyance of the tunnel during subsequent blasting.

2. The method of excavating rock tunnels comprising first constructing a drift heading then removing the roof by blasting in a stope heading, blasting away the material. from the lower surface of the stope heading, allowing the broken material to gravitate to receptacles and maintaining said stope heading in advance of the tunnel during subsequent blasting.

8. The method of excavating tunnels which comprises constructing a drift heading, erecting a. staging in the drift heading, providing this staging with an opening, blasting in a stope heading, blasting away the material from the lower surface of the stope heading, allowing the broken material to gravitate through the opening in the staging into receptacles, maintaining said stope heading in advance of the tunnel during subsequent blasting and advancing the opening in the staging as the rear end of the stope heading is advanced.

4L. The method of excavating rock tunnels which comprises constructing a drift heading, erecting a. staging in the drift heading, providing this staging with an opening, blasting in a stope heading, blasting away the material from the lower surface of the stope heading, allowing the broken material to gravitate through the opening in the staging into a. receptacle, maintaining said stope heading in advance of the tunnel during subsequent blasting and advancing the opening in the staging and the receptacle so that the opening and receptacle will at all times be in vertical alinement with the rear end of the stope heading as said rear end is advanced.

The method of excavating tunnels comprising first constructing a drift heading` then removing the roof by blasting in a stope heading, blasting away the material from the lower surface of the stope heading so that the walls of the stope heading will break the momentum of the broken material, then allowing the broken material to gravitate to receptacles and maintaining said stope heading in advance of the tunnel during subsequent blasting.

6. The method of excavating tunnels comprising first constructing a drift heading, then removing the roof and widening the tunnel by blasting in a stope heading of a In testimony whereof I affix my signature greater width than the'tunnel, blasting away in the presence of two witnesses. the material from the lower surface of the stope heading, allowing the broken material EDWARD E' MCCABE to gravitate to receptacles and maintaining Witnesses:

said stope heading in advance of the tunnel FRANK T. SHEEAN,

during subsequent blasting. A. O. AUSTERMANN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Yatents, Washington, D. C. 

